Vincent is in Japan.
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“One note - because we bring the grapes to Oregon and make the wines in our facility here, we cannot legally write the words Napa Valley on the wine labels. By law we can only say “California” or use a specific vineyard name. so we’re doing that.” - Vincent
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Thanks Patrick. To elaborate, because Oregon is a contiguous state to California, we are entitled to call it “California” wine. If we brought the fruit to Washington or another state not bordering California, we could only call it American wine. Rules are rules and I get it, if you bring the fruit across the country you might truly have quality concerns, plus as with us the fruit does not ferment in its native region. Yes we could bring it far far south in California and no worries on labeling. Ultimately the wine is factually from Napa and though we fermented it in Oregon, it’s obviously Napa wine. Sorta like taking a surf bro from SoCal and plopping them down in Chicago, they’re still going to be all braaahhhh, what’s uuuuuupp. Like Frenchie!
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They are top notch. To be clear though, the connection is no guarantee of our ultimate quality and I definitely don’t want to make more of the connection beyond the fact that we are working with them. Definitely visit Matthiasson and buy their wines. I do! And I’ve found them inspirational.
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- 2021 Vincent Pinot Noir Armstrong Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Ribbon Ridge (3/22/2024)
Decanted 2 hrs. While I have had quite a few of the WV designate chards and pinots, I have yet to open a single vineyard Vincent beverage, time to remedy that on a Wednesday night. Having enough of the WV's pinots, I was pretty aware and love the house style - here we have a bit more oomph and power but at no expense of the elegance and purity Vincent's wines are known for. Dark fruits flirting with red tendencies, some floral notes hover, and most excellent overall harmony and balance. Ok, time to sleep for a bit. Berserker Day purchase. (93 points)
Posted from CellarTracker
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I picked up some of the 2016 Pinot Noir (the Armstrong Vineyard) from BD15 - any suggestions one when to pull one of those corks? Decant? Thanks!! 
I opened one a little while ago and found it very youthful, I may check back in at 10 years or wait a bit longer. I also found that it tightened up with air, so if I were to open another I would not decant.
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I’ve had a couple of the 2016s (and 6 more on the way from BerserkerDay). I’ve found that they do best with a decant, but it needs a very long decant. The wine does get a bit tight and muted in that first hour or so, but let it keep going. With my first bottle, I noticed the wine was singing on day two, so with the second bottle I let it spend a good half day in the decanter, with some swirling every so often to bring more oxygen in. Pure awesomeness that evening when it was time to enjoy.
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I’m persuaded by so many comments here and elsewhere that the wines in general 1) can/need decanting young for best results, and 2) can age very well. I may be a bit biased toward not wanting people to feel like they can’t drink the wines young or must decant or else they’re doing it “wrong.” I’m not trying to make high maintenance wines lol. But yes the 16 Armstrong seems quite youthful and worthy of many more years. Not that it’s not drinking well now! Someone emailed asking about decanting on the ‘21s and Im leaning into your recommendations here - give them a good decant. I’d only add - try them before and see what you think. Perhaps you like them more coiled up, pop and pour. In the end, I’m just glad people are enjoying the wines and I hope find them dynamic and memorable too.
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Opened a 2022 PN Ribbon Ridge tonight.
Plum, raspberry cordial, dried leaves, crushed stones, and a touch of Moroccan spice on the nose. Somewhat rustic on the palate, the wine is medium-bodied and expansive, with tangy acids carrying dried mixed berry fruit, plum, roasted herbs, coffee bean, and barrel spice over a long finish. Very tasty stuff.
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Expansive is a good descriptor for that wine.
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The 22 Vincent Eola pinot i had a week ago was killer.no surprise there though. Just so balanced and complete.
Opened a 22 ribbon ridge this week. First time with this particular bottling. I found this one to have a huge hit of reduction upfront. A sort of funk note that makes you think Brett, but with about an hour in the glass or longer in the decanter it does completely blow off. Definitely not Brett. To me the wine leans more toward Cru Beaujolais, which is not a negative in my book as I love those wines, but it definitely feels different from many other sites I’m accustomed to with Vincent’s wines.
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I can see a comparison with Desvignes, for example, but some other less structured Bojo, not so much. In any event, I love the ‘22 Ribbon Ridge and, better still, so does my wife.
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Totally agree with you there.
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Just opened a 22 tardive chardonnay and initial thoughts are great. Wonderful acidity with orchard fruit and waxy texture, floral on the nose. Not a reductive style, so easy to drink now. Stupid value. Interestly, i like the 22 flavor profile more than the 21.
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I opened the same bottle Saturday night and my notes perfectly echo yours, Brian. Really enjoyed this bottle. I favor the 22 over the 21 as well. The wine felt a little Chassagne Montrachet-like in style. Still love that 21 Royer for a more Chablis-like experience, but loving the range of vineyards/styles in Vincent’s lineup.
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PSA: Vincent’s cabernet project is now open for pre-release sales. Order by May 15 to get the pre-release pricing.
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2022 Fritzsche Cabernet Sauvignon Bengier Vineyard $95 retail - $80 prerelease
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2022 Fritzsche Cabernet Sauvignon Family Reunion $60 retail - $48 prerelease
In classic Napa Cab fashion, the single vineyard is 13.1% abv and the Family Reunion is 12.6% abv.
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I posted a picture of an open bottle of Fritzsche Cab on IG last week, and got a lot of questions about it, so I figured I’d share my experiences with the wines here.
The usual caveats apply (Vincent is a friend/my winery’s landlord/a cellar-mate/someone with dubious U2-album preferences), but I’ve been really impressed with the Cabs.
I’ll admit my first thought when he told me about the project was “Why the hell are you doing this? You’re great at making Oregon wines!” Then he kept on me about it, and it started to make sense. Then the fruit came in, and I got to taste it, and smell the ferments, and taste it out of barrel…and it clicked.
They are pretty old school in some senses: The abv and the palate weights both point to that–I’ve tasted and seen on the sell-side how much the “average/modern” Napa consumer wants concentration and heaviness uber alles and these are not those wines. (Don’t worry, you won’t confuse them for Pinot, though).But the fruit profiles and tannins are more polished than I expected for wines at sub-13.5% natural abvs.
The fruit on both wines is very pretty and pure, without much in the way of green tones (at least to my Loire-loving palate) which shade towards the green tobacco side of things. Likewise, the tannins are present (it’s Cab) but are softer and more elegant that I was originally expecting given their alcohol/brix levels.These have 80s abvs, but there’s no way the wines from that that era were this charming on release. I don’t see a reason they won’t age for a long time, though. New oak on them is really tastefully done–they feel like Napa wines, but also aren’t vanilla/espresso-monsters.
This is a very long-winded way of saying that they are very Vincent wines, and so they reflect the place they come from quite a bit, but with an elegance and grace I find very appealing.
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Opened the 2021 Ribbon Ridge pinot noir last night and it blossomed into an excellent wine with 1+ hours of air time. Very good/excellent, 4- (out of 5). I can’t believe this cost me $26 (pre-release price). SHBIBTC I say. (should have bought it by the case).
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